Monday, December 12, 2005

I have to admit that I'm not entirely sure what this is a picture of exactly. I think it is some kind of rain shower. In any case, it is just one of the many pricey products showcased in this Forbes article, which argues that "bathrooms are the new kitchens" for the rich and fabulous. How fabulous, you ask?

Well, for a little less than $6,000, you can have a toilet that lifts the lid when you approach, shuts and flushes when you walk away, deodorizes and cleans itself depending on how often you use it, and offers some kind of "white noise" feature for privacy. For $150 per sq. ft. you can have your bathroom floor fixed with lighted tiles. You know, so you can pretend you are Michael Jackson in the Billie Jean video. Who doesn't want to do that in the bathroom?

If you're willing to throw down $15,000, you can have a mirror that doubles as a TV set. Hard to explain, but somehow the TV projects onto the mirror so that you can do your hair and watch Access Hollywood at the same time. If all goes well, it will become even more apparent to you how much uglier you are than Gwenyth Paltrow.